591st Engineer Company (Sapper)

Newsletter
February 2011- May 2011

company commander’s corner

cpt mark “the old man” welch

591ST Family, Friends, and Soldiers

A Happy Belated Mothers Day to all the mothers during the month as that is a very tough position
and well respected by this Command Team. In the future we will acknowledge the special days for
the upcoming month. So with that said “Happy Father’s day to all the Dad’s out there reading the
591st update. The Company and every person within it has contributed tremendously to changes and
I thank them daily and want to thank the home front for everything you do back there to support our
Soldiers.
Back to the mission: since taking command the company has been working 24/7 to keep up with
the operations including the inventories of every piece of equipment, moving to a new Operating
Environment in North Iraq, and executing our mission as a Route Clearance Company providing safe
passage for all military and civilians throughout the Iraqi Joint Operating Area.
The month of May is a blur but the 591st has left their mark in the Central Region and began our
impact in the North. Missions have begun with our Iraqi Counterpart as well as our Joint Missions
with our Infantry Brothers in search of the bad guys out here doing bad things.
The platoons conducted some awesome team building events in the area of physical fitness with
squad on squad completion including tug of war, tow bar carries, sandbag movements and buddy
carries. We completed the Physical Fitness Test to assess our fitness level and we did well but have
some room for improvement to work on the beach body we all wish we had.
Soldiers continue to go on block leave and are missed out here but deserve the break to relax and
enjoy time with their loved ones to recharge the batteries. The stories they come back with are a
breath of fresh air so everyone should make a plan to enjoy those days. Many opportunities are out
there for reasonable vacations and we will assist any Soldier with the process to reduce costs by
planning early.
As the Commander I have come to learn that this is a great group of individuals who come
together as a team at the squad and platoon level. Their support of me coming on board has enabled
me to focus on the future mission as well as develop some think tanks to better support their needs.
I look forward to getting involved with the FRG in the near future and would like some feedback on
what the folks back there would like to hear and see. This is a team and many contributions come
from an open mind.

Til next month. Take Care, God Bless, and GO PHILLIES….

Goliath 6
 Ramblings of a mad
executive officer
1lt donald “gus bus”
gustavson
I feel truly blessed to be a member of the
591st and to work with the personnel I do on a
daily basis. Your loved ones out here make the
mix of hectic and boring times we have an
enjoyable time rather than a hardship tour.
Being part of the last Engineer unit to be in
Iraq presents unique challenges--as Engineers
we must be prepared to do any odd job big
Army finds for us. Luckily this unit is up to that
challenge. Most of my work deals with the
headquarters and the various shops that keep
the Company running. The FMT--led by the
unstoppable Juggernaut SGT Woeltje--has
done an incredible job of taking care of
business. SGT Westbrook and new addition
PFC Dockery have done an awesome job on
the Supply side and PFC "Commo“ Jones keeps
all of our high-speed communications
equipment up and running.
The operations section--which runs our Tactical
Operations Center--has been expertly manned
by SSG Avila and SGT Faison. SPC Everhart is
the armorer in charge of every weapon system
in the Company and SSG "Doc" Talton is our
extremely knowledgeable Senior Medic--
prepared to advise and treat all of the injuries
or illnesses we might face. All of the Soldiers in
Headquarters works their butt off everyday to
make sure our line Platoons are as prepared as
possible to conduct combat operations and I
am very grateful for all the
support you give them! All good things
--1LT Donald Gustavson, Goliath 5
first sergeant’s soap box
1sg keith “rocks like
slayer” skidmore
Greeting to the family and friend’s of the
591st. I would like to say that I apologize for
not getting the newsletter started earlier.
The Soldiers have had an interesting time
since arriving in theater. We spent three
months at Camp Taji, just north of Baghdad,
conducting limited route clearance operations
and conducting training. In that time we said
farewell to Captain Kyle Hibbitts as here
prepares for his next duty assignment and
welcomed Captain Mark Welch as our new
commander.
We have just completed our movement to
COB Speicher and are beginning to conduct
operations as we learn to “love” our new
home. The Sappers of the 591st are excited and
ready to accept this new challenge.
Since arriving in theatre we have added
several members to the team: SSG Kerry
Bryant, SSG Jerome “Doc” Talton, SGT Matthew
Natur, PFC Darrell Dockery, PV2 Dennis Chua,
PV2 Shane Laubshcer and PV2 Ronny Moya-
Paniagua
I would also like to say congratulations and
welcome the newest members of the 591st
family:
-Daphne Marie was born on 5 April to Cassie
Brown and SPC Emilio Brown,
- Tristan Jameson born 13 April to Kathryn and
P FC Quinn Gagnon
-David Owen was born on 12 May to Martha
Moore and SPC David Moore,
-Scarlett Amber was born on 13 May to Nikki
Woeltje and SGT Matthew Woeltje
Until next time,
Goliath 7
 H
e
a
d
SGT Faison executes the push-up portion of q
the APFT during the Company’s recent
physical fitness test as SSG Bryant looks on to
Company XO Donald Gustavson explains the equipment load
plan in preparation for the unit’s movement to COB
u
ensure proper form. Physical fitness must be Speicher. The entire company worked long hours to ensure
maintained even during combat operations.
SGT Faison has done an excellent job in a
the entire set of vehicles and equipment were properly
prepared to be driven or loaded for the long drive. Due to
a
these efforts the movement and subsequent start of combat
demanding position as night battle captain.
operations went smoothly.
The command team r
after a PT session—our
Company headquarters
around them is nearly
t
empty due to the
upcoming move to COB e
Speicher. Despite the
demands of preparing
for the move,
conducting Change of
r
daily operations Sappers s
Command, and running

always do PT.
Apparently 1SG was
working a little harder
as evidenced by his t-
shirt.
P
l
a
t
SPC Moore, aka “Rooster,”
pauses for a photo op while
SGT Woeltje leads the commander through Change of
o
conducting maintenance. SPC

Moore and the rest of the “Raise
Hell“ motor pool have worked
long hours to ensure that our
fleet of up-armored Route
Clearance vehicles stay up and
running.
o
Command inventories in the motor pool. While not the most
glamorous aspect of our operations every piece of property
had to be shown to the Commander before he signs for it.
Every member of the company worked hard to ensure it
went smoothly. n
 FIRST Platoon
1lt ryan “rocco” o’connor sfc michael “where’s my dip” comfort
Hey, hope all is well back home and that everyone is enjoying the
beautiful spring weather back there. The weather has been warming
up over here; and so has life for 591st and especially first platoon. We
have been doing a lot of missions, training, and moving. We just
completed our move from Camp Taji to COB Speicher; it wasn’t easy
but we got it done. Everyone is starting to get adjusted to life here and
things are starting to fall into place. Along with the move, we have also
completed a lot of training. Speaking of training, I would like to
recognize PFC Ross for shooting 39 out of 40 at the range and also SGT
Casoose and PFC Clark for scoring perfect on their APFT. We also have
started our new partnership with the Iraqi Army. It was good seeing
soldiers being soldiers, no matter which country they were from. But
anyways, nobody likes to read a lot so below are some pictures from
the last month. I hope everything is going well on the home front and
we all miss you over here. Take care and enjoy the pictures. Goliath16
 FIRST Platoon

The platoon having fun with the birthday boys.

Specialist Lohndorf and Private Brown tried hiding
the fact that it was their birthday and this was the
end result. Next time, I don’t think they will try
hiding it as much.
Some pictures from the platoon PT event we did. It
consisted of pushups, situ-ups, pull-ups, carrying a
litter with a squad member in it, carrying a 300
pound tow bar, running a mile, and flipping a 500
pound tire. It was first squad vs. second squad and
was back and forth the whole event, however first
squad just pulled out the victory.

2nd squad conducting a little training on

movement techniques and security.

Doing a little robot training. Don’t worry everyone,

that is a fake round sitting beside the rock.
 SECOND Platoon
2lt james “tf lowe” lowe ssg seth “iron man” walls
The soldiers of 2nd Platoon work hard and they
play hard. The final event in the Platoon Battle
Ready Physical Training Day on 07MAY11 was a
tug-of-war contest complete with a mud pit.
Even while being dragged through the mud, PV2
Membreno and PV2 Brooks still fight to the last
as 2nd Squad Leader of 2nd Platoon, SGT
Kavanagh, and the PLT Medic, SPC “Doc”
Roberts, cheer them on.

PV2 Booth helps the new Platoon Leader, 2LT

Lowe, build a relationship with the local Iraqi
Army responsible for the security of main supply
routes

SPC McConnell and PV2 King rest in the

back of the MaxxPro after arriving in Joint
Base Balad . SPC McConnell is also
demonstrating the other use of the
stretcher in the rear of the CASEVAC
vehicle, while PV2 King was not so
fortunate in his accommodations for rest.
 SECOND Platoon

SGT Slivinski controls traffic and secures the south

side of the As Sindiyah Bridge site along with an IP
counterpart. SGT “Ski” is the A Team Leader of 2nd
Squad, 2nd Platoon. His work on the ground
maintained order at the site while elements of the
299th MRBC conducted necessary repairs.

1LT MacArthur, the outgoing Platoon Leader of 2 nd

Platoon, and SGT Garza, the 1st Squad Leader of 2nd
Platoon, take a second to rest on a Mine Roller
back in Joint Base Balad after a successful
 THIRD Platoon
1lt benjamin “hughey” schmidt sfc aaron “mcveigh” tippett
Hello to all of you back home. We miss you a great deal and talk of you often and fondly amongst ourselves. It lifts
our spirits and makes the days that much better. It has been a long road getting here and en even longer one
traveled while in country. We could not have gotten here without the cohesion we have as a unit and the
unwavering support of the family members there. The pride that we feel in our families, our unit, our mission, our
accomplishments, our Leaders and Soldiers is a feeling that is almost impossible to express in plain words. Things
have been very busy for us over the past four months and will begin to pick up speed even more so in the coming.
Not only has the mission here transitioned from Combat Operations to supporting the Iraq’s but we have also had
several distinct movements and additions to our job sets as well. The fact that the operation name changed is just
the tip of the iceberg for us. Every new location and challenge is met by your leaders and Soldiers head on and with a
ferocity and tenaciousness that we have not seen in the past. It is amazing to watch them all work and we would
never want to be surrounded by any other group of Soldiers than these. Please keep us in your thoughts and prayers,
know that you are in ours and expect great things from us in the very near future and throughout our deployment.
Until next time, be safe and well and count the days as we do. - SFC Tippett

SGT May: To my
family and friends;
miss and love you
guys very much. And
to my special wife I
love you too the
moon and back and I
can’t wait till you are
in my arms once
again. I’m getting
really excited about
our daughter joining
us soon.
 Third Platoon
SPC Dannible :
What's going on dad
and bro. miss you
guys. I’m working
really hard which
makes the time go
by quick. See you
soon. Love you guys

PFC Gonzalez : I wanna say hi to all

my family and friends in the EP.
Love and miss you guys. I wanna
give a special lil shout out to my
wife and daughter Corinne and
Audrey. Hay baby you are getting so
big, daddy will be home soon. To
my mom thanks for always being
there for me and my Bro Jesus for
always being there to talk to. Love
you and see you soon

PFC Watson: Hello mom, I love you

and I'll see you when I get home on
R&R. Tell Alex I love her and miss
her, and ill baby sit for a night when
I get home. Love and miss everyone
see you guys soon.
DEPLOYMENT COINS

“WE STRIKE”
Deployment Coin
In the future, this will be considered as an item
for purchase to assist the FRG if there is a
desire.

Soldiers will currently earn these by their

actions during the Deployment and be
presented by the 1SG and myself.

These coins will become a highly coveted item

here in theater shortly.